1. Isaiah Crowell is the kind of "Back from Nowhere" who ends up being somebody in the NFL. Crowell was gifted enough to be the SEC freshman of the year at Georgia in 2011, rushing for 850 yards (4.6 average) and five touchdowns. Very impressive for an 18-year-old in the country's top football conference.

2. Crowell had some legal problems, and left Georgia. He spent the next two years at Alabama State in what used to be called Division 1-AA. It's a step under Division I, and Crowell was eligible to play there immediately. In 2013, Crowell ran for 1,121 yards (6.6 average) and 15 touchdowns.

3. Crowell's college stats were very good, but not as eye-popping as those of Terrance West (2,509 yards, 41 TDs rushing at Towson). But watching the two backs, Crowell has looked more explosive. A third round pick, West ran for only 88 yards in 31 carries (2.7 average) in the preseason. He wasn't decisive hitting the holes. Perhaps he still needs more time to adjust to the speed of the game after playing at a smaller school.

4. While his preseason exposure was limited, Crowell looked like a big-time college back with 105 yards in 15 carries (7.0 average). He's 5-foot-11, 225 pounds and quick. The Browns plan to run the ball and they need depth in the backfield behind starter Ben Tate. Between Crowell and West, they have that.

5. Dion Lewis was cut in favor of Crowell. Lewis broke his leg in the 2013 preseason and never showed the same speed as before the injury. He had only 30 yards in 12 preseason carries.

6. Chris Ogbonnaya also was cut. He was OK, but would also be a backup. Crowell has a chance to be more than that, so give General Manager Ray Farmer credit for convincing Crowell to come to the Browns as an undrafted player -- and then giving him a chance in the regular season.

Armonty Bryant is one of only two players remaining with the Browns from 2013 draft. The other is Barkevious Mingo.John Kuntz / The Plain Dealer

3. Seventh-rounder Bryant may start. He certainly will see a lot of action as he has been impressive as a pass rusher. So the previous front office deserves credit for that. Mingo has a chance to prove he can be an impact pass rusher, as Mike Pettine's defense is known for putting players such as Mingo in formations to flourish.

4. The Browns lost their 2013 second-round pick when they took Josh Gordon in the 2012 Supplemental Draft. Gordon emerged as a star, but he's now suspended for a year. They took Jamoris Slaughter in the sixth round, but he never fully recovered from an Achilles injury and was cut in the spring.

5. While the two first-rounders from 2012 (Trent Richardson and Brandon Weeden) are gone, the Browns still have the following from that draft: Mitchell Schwartz (2nd round), John Hughes (3rd round), Travis Benjamin (4th round) and Billy Winn (6th round).

1. The Browns have 12 players who fall under the following position categories: Quarterback, receiver, fullback and running back. Guess how many of those 12 were with the team last season? Two! It's quarterback Brian Hoyer and wide receiver (return man) Travis Benjamin.

2. The running backs (thank goodness!) are all new: Tate, West and Crowell. They added Ray Agnew as a old-fashioned blocking fullback, something they will need if they stick to wanting to have a serious running attack. They also picked up Glenn Winston from the 49ers on waivers.

3. The quarterbacks are Hoyer and Johnny Manziel, for now. The Browns terminated the contract of Rex Grossman on Sunday. A year ago, it was Brandon Weeden, Jason Campbell and Hoyer. Weeden (Dallas) and Campbell (Cincinnati) made teams this season.

4. In case you were wondering, Campbell was 26-of-45 passing (58 percent) with three touchdowns and two interceptions for the Bengals. Weeden was 34-of-57 (60 percent) with two touchdowns and two interceptions for Dallas in the preseason.

ABOUT THE RECEIVERS

1. The Browns kept five. The only one returning is Travis Benjamin. He caught only three passes last season. He played in eight games before being injured and needing knee surgery.

2. Miles Austin caught 10 passes in his first game for Dallas last year, then battled hamstring issues. He had only 24 catches for the entire season.

3. Andrew Hawkins has been the most impressive receiver in camp. He signed as a free agent after spending three years with the Bengals. He played only eight games last season (12 catches) because of an ankle injury. In 2012, he had 51 catches and four touchdowns for the Bengals.

4. Charles Johnson was waived Sunday after being claimed off the Green Bay practice squad last season. He never played in a game and had knee surgery. He's spot is taken by LaRon Byrd, claimed on waivers from Dallas. He caught seven passes in the preseason, including a 27-yarder for a touchdown from Weeden. He was with Arizona in 2012-13, played in four games and caught one pass.

5. Taylor Gabriel made the team as an undrafted free agent from Abilene Christian. He led the team with 10 catches in the preseason. The way the roster is set up right now, Gabriel could play a lot.

6. So of the receivers, three (other than Gabriel and Byrd) had significant injury problems last season. Austin missed five games, Hawkins missed and Benjamin missed eight.

7. The Browns receivers caught only a combined total of 39 passes in the NFL last season.

8. From the optimistic side, Austin had 66 catches in 2012, Hawkins had 51. So when relatively healthy, they did produce. The Browns will certainly bring in receivers cut by other teams for tryouts.

ABOUT CUTS

1. I was not surprised that they cut Nate Burleson. He's 33, had trouble staying healthy, rarely practiced and played in only one preseason game. He has missed 17 games (out of 32) in the last two seasons. He is a possession receiver, and the Browns need someone with speed.

2. I liked MarQueis Gray and would have liked to see the Browns keep him on the practice squad, but he has signed with the Vikings. Garrett Gilkey was claimed by Tampa Bay, where he will play for former Browns line coach George Warhop.

3. Greg Little was dropped by Oakland. And to think that he was a starter here for the last three years.

5. Former Browns general manager Tom Heckert (2010-12) works for Denver, and he brought in some of his former Browns players to try out with the Broncos. The following were cut: Ryan Miller, Brian Sanford and L.J. Fort. They do have T.J. Ward (2nd rounder, 2010) as a starting safety. The Browns let Ward go and signed Donte Whitner.

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